Page 21 of Revenge Honeymoon

“Trivia Master,” Emily said.

As the pianist swept into a surprisingly rousing version of Ed Sheeran’sPerfect, the trio headed toward the stairs. Ruby first, Max second, and Emily third.

It was hard not to notice how Ruby and Max complemented each other: ruggedly handsome and dark Max next to willowy and auburn-haired Ruby. Even the diners around them noticed.

But that was silliness. Yesterday Ruby had been broken-hearted at the altar...well, maybe not the literal altar, but very broken-hearted in the choir room at the First Presbyterian Church. Two people looking good together didn’t mean anything. That was only a thing people said, right?

Probablynobody had ever said that about her and any of the men she’d dated. In fact, her mother had called Kyle ‘sloppy and immature,’ which hadn’t been that far from the truth. Once, her grandmother had noted the sturdiness of her college boyfriend, Nate. But that was about it. And ‘sturdy’ didn’t exactly equal ‘handsome.’ That was closer to saying he wouldn’t blow over in a windstorm. Solid. Dependable. The kind of man everyone expected her to end up with.

Then solid and dependable Nate dumped her right before graduation for a freshman she’d tutored for a semester in Meteorology 101.

Maybe promising not to talk about their lives off ship would be the best promise she’d ever made. She could be whoever she wanted to be. A mystery woman with a mystery past. Hmm...it grew more tempting by the minute.

“So where’s this casino?” Emily asked, tripping up the stairs.

* * *

“Welcome to Trivia Night at the Double Aces Casino,” announced Sylvia.

Sylvia seemed to get around. But as the ship’s cruise director (which Emily had discovered on the ship’s news channel on the in-cabin tv when changing for dinner), she probably was in charge of making sure all the events ran smoothly.

Ruby, Emily, and Max found a small table near a slot machine on the outskirts of the trivia contest area. Max had to grab a stool from one of the blackjack tables so he had somewhere to sit. All the seating had been arranged for couples of two to four players.

Although he sat raised above their table by about eight inches, he didn’t seem to mind looming over the two best friends. He rested his beer on a pony wall that separated the gambling zone from the bar.

A server in black pants and a bright blue polo shirt with ‘Double Aces Casino’ stamped on the breast pocket handed out small sheets of paper in a variety of colors and tiny little pencils—like the ones they hand out in mini golf.

“Tonight’s trivia game is our version ofThe Newlywed Game.” Sylvia smiled broadly, spread out her arms, and made it seem as if the whole casino thought this was the greatest idea ever for trivia.

Emily gulped.

What was Newlywed Game trivia? Didn’t sound good.

“Each question will be about your partner. Answer as honestly as you can. At the end of the game, we will compare answers, and the couple with the most correct answers to the same question wins a spin on the prize wheel!”

The server who handed out the paper and pencils rolled in the prize wheel—a bright red wheel on a stand that had at least sixteen prizes possible. Most were silly things like a free drink or a turn on the zip line suspended above the pool area. But then Emily saw a thousand dollars in cash and a free couple’s choice excursion. Now things were getting interesting.

“To make this fair, we can’t have you sitting next to your partner, can we?” Sylvia wagged her finger. “No, no, no!”

Ruby looked at Emily. Emily looked at Ruby. Max drank his beer and doodled on his yellow piece of paper.

“If you have a pink piece of paper, you will need to sit at the tables marked one, two, three, and four. If you have a blue piece of paper, you will need to sit at the tables marked five, six, seven, and eight.”

Ruby held a blue piece of paper. Emily held a pink piece.

Max shook his yellow piece of paper in the air, “What about yellow?”

“Yellow will need to sit at the tables marked nine, ten, eleven, and twelve,” Sylvia announced. Her mouth formed a straight line when she saw who’d asked the question.

Maybe Max had been told not to participate in the passenger activities?

“Green will need to sit at the tables marked thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, and sixteen.” Sylvia wove her way through the tables to reach Max at the very back. “Please find a table, and we’ll begin once everyone is seated. This is going to be fun!”

Max finished off his beer and rose to seek out the correct tables.

Before he had a chance to move, Sylvia reached him and switched off her mic. “Sit down.”

“Why?”

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